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SERUM INSTITUTE TO DEVELOP NEW MENINGOCOCCAL VACCINE

February 1, 2007

The Serum Institute of India and the Health Protection Agency (HPA) have announced a collaboration to develop a vaccine for the prevention of meningococcal septicaemia and meningitis. The firms hope the new vaccine will be effective against all forms of the disease.

The HPA has been developing a vaccine against Group B meningococcus for a decade. The candidate vaccine is currently in Phase I development in the UK and contains an organism known as Neisseria lactamica, which is related to the pathogenic Neisseria meningitidis bacterium.

The HPA has licensed its vaccine technology to the Serum Institute, which will combine the components of the Group B vaccine with the components of the Group A and C conjugate vaccines it already makes. It will also add conjugates for the Y and W135 strains in order to produce a pan-meningococcal vaccine effective against all the significant strains of the disease. The new vaccine will be manufactured and undergo clinical trial testing in India.

The Serum Institute is the world's largest producer of measles and diphtheria, tetanus and polio vaccines. The HPA is a UK-based research organization.